


Surprisingly Refreshing

by Kentarou_San



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 09:41:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28615980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kentarou_San/pseuds/Kentarou_San
Summary: Before Papa Nihil's death and Copia's promotion Rain is transferred to another branch of the church for what was supposed to be a short time, turns out Nihil had other plans. Papa IV is left trying to get Rain back while the new water ghoul, a small female, is left trying to survive surrounded by ghouls that miss their friend. They do not like her at first, nor treat her well, but as they get used to her with push from Rain they find that her presence is surprisingly refreshing. Especially Mountain, the quiet Earth ghoul who always seems disproving and uninterested.This is somewhat of a reader insert, just have fun.
Relationships: Aether Ghoul | Omega Ghoul/Dewdrop Ghoul | Fire Ghoul, Cirrus | Air Ghoulette/Cumulus | Air Ghoulette/Multi Ghoul | Swiss Army Ghoul, I'll add more tags as it develops - Relationship, Mountain | Earth Ghoul/Original Female Character(s), The ghouls aren't human, This is just for fun - Relationship
Comments: 4
Kudos: 17





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Your comments are highly appreciated, feel free to leave some!

The clergy had many ghouls, beast-like ex-humans that have been raised to become demons in life after death. Many would come and go, either leaving the clergy to find other business or getting transferred to other branches. There were many jobs for the ghouls in the clergy, all playing their specific part, kitchen ghouls, alter ghouls, cleaning ghouls, etc. There were also elemental ghouls, they had tiers to their jobs. All elemental ghouls were important and even had their own parts of the church that were specifically theirs, most of them did work based off of their element such as Earths growing herbs for spells, and Fires keeping the sacred candles lit. However, the elemental ghouls that directly served the Papa’s are the most important, and are often referred to as Clergy Ghouls because they belong to the Papa and the Papa only. Their job is to travel with the papa as both bodyguards and helpers, as well as to use their skills and abilities in order to aid in the conversion of new members of the church. The main way this is done is by disguising as a human band and playing the sacred hymns created by all of the Papa’s, past and present. Not all ghouls and ghoulettes are elemental, however the ones that serve the Papa’s must always be of elemental variety due to their tendency to be more powerful as well as entertaining for audiences than non-elemental ghouls.

Because the elemental ghouls were so important to the clergy oftentimes they would stay in their position for most of their time in the clergy, and if one had to be replaced a member of the same branch would replace them. However, there had been a couple of circumstances within the capital church that left Papa IV in need of a new water ghoul with the right skills to be part of the group that served him.

Before he had become a full Papa and earned his skull paint and before Papa Nihil had died they had received a distressed letter from one of the leaders of another church branch. The branch’s current water ghoul had moved on to Hell in order to directly serve Satan, and they were left without another fully realized water ghoul to take on the duties of the last one. They begged Nihil and the not-yet-promoted Papa IV to send their current water ghoul to train their replacement water ghoul in the absence of the one they lost. Copia had not wanted to send out Rain, the water ghoul that he had grown to know and love, especially since they were so understaffed in the water ghoul department that Rain was the only one at the capital branch and they were currently working on summoning more to fill other duties. Nihil on the other hand thought that it was a good idea since Copia’s campaign had just ended and they would not be going on another for some time. Copia had tried to put his foot down, Sister Imperator backing him up, however neither of them could get through to the old Papa this time. It was like the old man wanted this to happen for whatever reason.

In the end, Rain was sent out to the other branch, the lead bishop there promising to take good care of him in his time there. The mood around the other clergy ghouls was dim for a while, missing their friend. However, weekly letters from the ghoul made them all feel a little bit better, especially Papa IV who was trying to push the leading bishop of the other branch to send Rain back to the capital. Problems arose the fifth month of Rain being gone, Papa IV sent a letter telling the bishop that it was time for Rain to return as the other ghouls were getting restless. The clutch Rain belonged to was starting to fall out of balance, Dewdrop had bit three people in two days, and Aether seemed too depressed to stop him. Not to mention the normally happy go lucky air ghouls all seemed drained, the only one seemingly normal was Mountain who was spending more and more time outside.

There was no response from the bishop for three weeks, Papa let it slide for the first two weeks because sometimes the carriers got mixed up every now and then. However, at the start of the third week he started to prepare to go to the other branch, they were going to leave that Sunday. While waiting to go get Rain the other ghouls were restless and excited, their tails already curling as if the beloved water ghoul was already home.

That Friday, a car arrived, marked with the sigil of the branch that Rain had been sent to. The moment that Papa had gotten notified that the car was at the gates he gathered all the elemental ghouls that served him, all of them waiting for the car to arrive outside with excitement. Dewdrop pounced on Aether with excitement, the little ghoul playfully biting at his friend as they lined up like usual. Aether let the ghoul do what he wanted, but warned him with a light chuckle to go easy on Rain because he might be tired. Swiss and the Ghoulettes all seemed to vibrate with excitement, chattering happily like air ghouls tended to do. Even quiet Mountain was clearly excited, chuckling with Cirrus as she talked excitedly about what it must have been like for rain to be away for almost six months.

The car pulled up, its tinted windows blocking everyone’s sight into the car. Papa stepped up, smiling as he opened the door. The smile quickly fell to a look of confusion however as he found himself greeting a small female ghoul who immediately pushed an envelope at him. He took it and stepped back, allowing the small ghoul to step out of the car silently. She closed the door and held out another envelope, this time holding it out to the ghouls that stood in front of her. The air was now tense and confused, it took Aether a couple of seconds to take the letter from her. She slouched a little as he took it, a typical move of a new clutch member to show that they are not trying to challenge the dominance of the other ghouls.

A second ghoul stepped out of the car, this one sitting in the front seat. He was taller and wore the typical uniform of a messenger ghoul, he nodded to Papa and moved to stand next to the little female ghoul. “Papa, what you have in your hand is a letter from the bishop of the branch that we hail from, please read it.” The messenger ghoul said and the two of them bowed to the Papa, he then turned towards Papa’s ghouls but still addressed Papa himself. “What your Aether ghoul holds is a letter from the ghoul that was once your water ghoul, it is lower priority, read it as you wish.” The messenger ghoul said and then bowed again, the small female ghoul following suit.

Papa opened the letter in his hands, the ghouls behind him waiting for his permission to open the one from Rain. It worried him that the messenger used the past tense when talking about Rain. The letter had two papers in it, the first one was from the bishop and explained that Nihil promised Rain to his branch before he died and that the female ghoul he sent was Rain’s replacement since the capital did not have any other water ghouls to replace Rain. Papa felt anger well inside of him as he read the other paper, it appeared to be a copy of the letter Nihil had sent before he died. Sure enough, he did promise Rain to the other bishop, stating that the other branch had needed a more experienced ghoul to take care of them anyway. It was a half insult to the other branch actually.

Papa looked up at the messenger ghoul, then at the small female water ghoul that was now apparently his. He couldn’t help that his mood had soured as he looked behind himself to his ghouls, “Rain is not coming back, it appears we have a new addition to Papa’s ghouls.” he said with the slightest bitterness in his voice. He saw the other ghouls' disappointment even as their faces were covered with the ceremonial masks, he could picture each of their faces, he felt their anger, sadness, and disappointment wholeheartedly. The small water ghoul looked at the ground, her face pointed forward, Papa couldn’t even feel bad for her at the moment because he was just too overwhelmed.

“Go inside.” He ordered the ghouls, to which they went save the new water ghoul who stood like a statue. Papa sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, crumpling up the letter in his fist and stuffing it in his pocket. “Tell the bishop that my ghoul was not his to give, and to expect that he will be sending the ghoul back soon.” He said, knowing Sister Imperator was going to set fire to Nihil’s grave and he would most likely join her. The messenger ghoul nodded and stepped back into the car, patting the water ghoul on the shoulder somewhat familiarly before closing the door and letting the car drive away.

That left the little water ghoul and Papa standing outside as the sun started the slow process of setting, she bowed to him silently the second he looked at her. He sighed again, motioning her up from her bow. “Have you been given a name?” He asked her tiredly and he turned to go inside, to which she shook her head as she quietly followed him in. 


	2. Letters from a Lover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not a filler, important schtuff inside

Inside the common building of the church complex the ghouls sat around the main room, some grouped together, others alone. None of them spoke as they waited for Papa to return, they were all lost in thought as they now knew that for whatever reason Rain would not be coming back as they all had hoped. A couple of cleaning ghouls and ghouls passing by watched them, they were not allowed to speak to them without being spoken to but nevertheless they were concerned because the clutch never seemed so sad. Aether still clutched the letter from Rain in his hands, looking down at the nimble writing the water ghoul had been known for. He wondered if this was the ghouls last letter, a final goodbye… He hoped not, they had been allowed to send letters back and forth before and taking that away would hurt the clutch further. Dewdrop sat next to him quietly, his tail wagging back and forth with annoyance, anger, or both, Aether felt it and understood it. Surely it wasn’t Papa IV who had given Rain away… Or was it? He shook the question from his mind, knowing doubting the Papa would not reflect well. Even if it was Papa, he probably had a good reason for it.

The ghouls perked up as Papa came inside, the new water ghoul following behind him. Aether felt Dew’s angry tail start wagging faster as it hit him a couple of times, he elbowed the fire ghoul gently which earned him a death stare but the ghoul’s tail laid down and started lightly thumping against the couch instead. Papa walked over and gently took the letter from Aether, usually he would let the ghouls read the letters that came for them but he felt he needed to be part of this. He sat down on the small tea table in the center of the furniture so that all ghouls could see him, he pointed at a chair for the new water ghoul to sit but she shook her head. She could smell the scent of the other ghouls all around her, she knew that if she sat down right now she risked a territory dispute even more than she did just standing there. Papa, who had become familiar with ghoul behavior overtime realized why the ghoul refused to sit and looked around for a cleaning ghoul.

“You, take this one to Sister Imperator and the Sisters of Sin so that she may be cleansed of her foreign attire- And take this.” He said and gave the crumpled letter from the bishop to a tall ghoulette who nodded and motioned for the new water to follow, once they were gone and the room was clear he turned his attention to the rather fat envelope in his hands. Upon tearing it open he found a couple of pages, there appeared to be one for every ghoul as well as Papa, and one labeled to be read allowed to everyone. Papa handed the ghouls and ghoulettes their specifically labeled letters, keeping his, and the group one in his hand. He did not want them to read the letters now however so he read the group letter allowed as soon as he could.

“Dear friends,

I’m afraid I won’t be coming back to be part of the clutch again, in truth I’ve known since the day I was sent here. I’m sorry for not telling you, for a long time it was painful to acknowledge. Though I will miss you all dearly, things are not so bad here. I am pampered pretty well, and the clutch that serves the bishop (though in no way compared to you all) has welcomed me with love and gratitude. I know that the bishop said that they did not have another water ghoul and that was true when I was sent out here, however a ghoul had her awakening shortly after I had arrived and luckily she turned out to be of the water element. I have been training her from that time on, I know all of you are unhappy but I ask that you treat her well as she is a lovely little thing. I didn’t think much of her at first, but you too will warm up to her. I will continue to send letters to you all, the bishop has also said that after mine and the other ghouls' conversion to the branches are done we may be able to visit you all as friends. Until then, don’t miss me too much.

With love from the water ghoul that loves you most,

Rain.”

The group sat quietly for a moment, Papa tucked the letter back into it’s sleeve neatly. “Nihil apparently promised Rain to them over there, I’m going to talk to Sister Imperator in order to get him back.” Papa said looking around at the sad ghouls surrounding them, Cumulus was crying silently, he could see her reaching underneath her mask to wipe away the tears. He patted Mountain’s leg as he was the ghoul closest to him, and with a deep sigh stood up. “In the meantime be nice to the new ghoul, make her feel as welcome as you can. I know I don’t do it often but that’s an order.” He said and made his way towards the long hall that connected the common building to the buildings on the left side of the capital church’s estate, he could feel the pained eyes of his ghouls on his back. He made his way to the East building which Sister Imperator and the Sisters of Sin usually did their business in, and there he had a couple of sisters lead him to where Sister Imperator was overseeing the cleansing of the new water ghoul.

As was typical of ceremonies Papa waited outside for it to be finished, knowing that it was almost done based on how long it took him to read to the ghouls. Sitting on the bench allowed him time to read the personal letter sent to him by Rain, it explained that the ghoul was happy in his new place and that everything would be okay if Papa could not return him to the clutch he had come from. Rain also seemed to push Papa to watch out for the new water ghoul, referring to her as Puddle in the letter, even though she had told Papa she did not have a name yet. Rain expressed worry that some of the ghouls would be cruel to her during her time at the capital branch, whether that be a couple of weeks, or for the rest of her life. Papa IV read and understood the letter but felt like it wasn’t too much of an issue, ‘Rain will be back with us soon anyway.’ he thought as he put the letter away.

Footsteps approached and outcame Sister Imperator and the new water ghoul, they were followed by a heavy wave of warm steam that made the hair on his arms stand up. He looked at the water ghoul who was now in the correct attire that all of the ghouls directly subservient to the Papa wear, it felt almost wasted to Papa as he knew that neither him nor any of the ghouls would want to perform the induction ceremony as long as it was still possible to get Rain back. “Hello Sister.” He greeted the older woman, she nodded back and led the two of them to her office. She held the letter from the bishop as well as the copy of Nihil’s in her hand, she looked a bit peeved, as she should have been.

“You may sit.” She said sitting at her desk, setting the slightly crumpled papers on the neat top. Papa nodded and sat down, thanking her to which the cranky woman said: “Not you, you no longer need my permission. Her. She no longer smells of the ghouls from the other church.” She gave an anything but amused smirk, finding the Papa somewhat amusing. He turned around to watch the small ghoul sit in a chair at the back of the room quietly, Papa was unable to read her emotions and it vexed him slightly as he was the best with ghouls out of all of the Papa’s; it was one of the few things he bragged about.

“Is there a way to get Rain back? Nihil is dead and I am Papa now, surely the bishop has to yield to me now.” He turned back, leaning over the desk and intertwining his fingers. Sister Imperator swiveled in her chair, looking through the files behind her as she replied. “This is a bit of a grey area… technically he now completely belongs to the bishop. Taking him back could be considered stealing an asset from the church for personal gain?” She said with an unsure tone, pulling out a couple of pages. “How can this be? Even if I’m the Papa?” He asked, taping his joined fists lightly on the table. Imperator read the papers quietly for a moment, holding her glasses to her face.

“I’m afraid so, Rain was technically a donation from Nihil to the bishops branch even if he didn’t tell anyone but the bishop.” She said and pushed the papers to the side, letting her chin fall into her hands. “But, and I mean this nicely, the ghoul belongs to me!” He said in exacerbation, freeing his hands in order to hold them out at his sides in a ‘what the fuck’ type of gesture.

The woman groaned, “It’s even shittier… He didn’t belong to you at the time he was donated because you hadn’t become Papa yet. Meaning he was technically Nihil’s.” Papa stood up, anger swelling inside of him. “I know, it sucks and Nihil most likely planned this just to piss us both off.” She said quickly, standing up herself. She walked over and put a hand on the perturbed Papa’s shoulder, “The best thing we can do right now is write a formal request for the bishop to return Rain to you, if we both sign it he may fold and send him back… But it is not guaranteed.” She said patting the Papa lightly before turning her attention to the ghoul in the back of the room who was quietly watching them.

“In the meantime you should induct her in with your ghouls so that they do not attack her,” She said and Papa turned to look at the water ghoul as well, she sat there quietly and gazed into Papa IV’s eyes. For the first time he was able to recognise an emotion, it was fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puddle is not the name that will stick with the ghoul, I know it's ugly but it's part of the story. This chapter feels a bit like a filler but there are some important details. Also what type of horns should our ghoul have? I was thinking mini Addax horns!


	3. Just a Glimpse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter. I feel like this is gonna be a really long work...

The ghouls sat in the common room for many uncountable minutes, whether an hour had passed, or thirty seconds, no one knew. No one cared. It felt timeless, like they had been stuck right back into limbo from where they had been summoned. Some sat in shock, others sat and wallowed in their sadness. Swiss gently held Cumulus as she calmed slowly down from her tears, Cirrus glanced into his eyes every now and then as she held both his and the other ghoullette’s hand. She looked worried, her eyes glassy with all of the thoughts rushing around her mind. Swiss would just look back and blink, trying to assure both himself and her that everything would be okay. They had been waiting so, so long for Rain to return, every single day they worried in secret about the bond between everyone and Rain weakening. Everyday they would feel the familiar ache of a missing loved one and know that it was still there, but now there was nothing but the ache. Even the happy go lucky air ghouls were weighed down with fear and worry, it was a sad sight to any being- man or ghoul- that passed by.

Around the room the others weren’t doing much better, Mountain sat with his head back as he looked aimlessly at the ceiling, a smooth rock loosely held in his large hand. No one ever knew what went on in his thoughts, the large, menacing ghoul was a sweetheart despite his faded clothes and unpolished, cracked mask. He loved Rain, as all the other ghouls did. He would sometimes bring the sweet ghoul wildflowers from the woods he often went into behind the church, everyone knew how much Rain loved to dry the flowers between the pages of his satanic bible. Every flower had a page in the book to Rain, a ghoul who knew nothing about growing flowers or their meanings. He just liked to look at them.

Meanwhile, Aether was hunched over in deep thought, his hands balled together as his elbows rested on his knees. His thoughts were more vague, him and Dewdrop were the two ghouls closest to Rain. He went through every memory he had with the ghoul, from meeting him, to making fun of the fire ghoul with him, to just hanging around the church laughing together. He seemed to emanate both happiness and sadness, his scent mixing with all of the others around him. It was all too much, it was pissing Dewdrop off to no end.

“This is fucking stupid, stop looking so depressed!” He almost growled, calling the attention of his clutch members, who all looked to him suddenly. He was standing now, with Aether trying to pull him to calm down, but his tail just swished with rage and smacked at the sitting quintessence ghoul. “The bishop can’t keep Rain, he’s ours and he’s coming back because Papa will get him back. Stop being so depressed, do you really think Papa would just let him go without a fight?!” His anger scent permeated the air, but the little ball of fire and rage had a point. Despite his anger the other ghouls perked up slightly, making Dewdrop flop back down besides his beefy friend. His tail stopped it’s angry thumping for only a moment before Papa returned, followed by the little water ghoul. He did not enjoy her presence, even after the cleansing she smelled wrong. It was like everything about the ghoul was wrong, like there was something up with her. Sure, maybe the bishop did need a more experienced water ghoul but they could have brought Rain and this ghoul here to finish training and then returned her when she was done. The situation seemed fishy, like there was another reason for the little ghoul to be placed here with them like a thorne in a gardener's thumb. For one, the ghoul was very small, shorter than him in fact. There was just no way a tiny ghoul like that could fulfill all or Rain’s dubties.

He also didn’t like the way she carried herself, normally a new ghoul would leave their tail hanging down below their knees but still slightly curly to let more dominant ghouls know that they were a friendly non-threat. This ghoul just stood there with her tail wrapped around her hips, like she did not wish to communicate or something. It rubbed him the wrong way, especially knowing that Rain had supposedly been training her for almost six months. Rain was a perfect ghoul, a happy one too- If his body language didn’t look right you always knew what he was thinking because it was reflected in his tail language, either curling sweetly or dropped to his ankles. His tail never swished with anger, there was not a single bit of vulgar attitude in his body. Dewdrop's tail calmed as he tried to pinpoint just what this imposter ghoul’s deal was. 

All of the ghouls' attentions were all grabbed by Papa who cleared his throat, “Me and Sister Imperator will be attempting to get Rain back, until then treat… Water as a guest here.” He said, hesitating in the middle as to whether to call the ghoul Puddle or not. He ultimately settled against it, thinking that it was a pet name that Rain had given her. A couple of the ghouls nodded but it went in one ear and out the other for Dewdrop whose lip was curling behind his mask, as if he was getting ready to attack. Aether saw this, as did Papa, both knew that the fiery ghoul wouldn’t do anything. They had learned years ago that he was mostly bark and less bite, besides, he was exceptionally obedient to Papa when he wasn’t being coy. For now they chose to let the small ghoul be angry, he was just using it to hide his own pain, and Papa didn’t have the emotional capability to take care of it at the moment either. 

It became time to break the silence that they had all fallen into once again, it was about supper time so Papa figured they would eat a little early today to get everyone’s mind off of the less than ideal situation. “Come, let's all eat and get used to each other.” He said opening his arms slightly, there was a split second pause but the ghouls did each get up to follow Papa towards the cafeteria. Usually Mountain would bring up the rear but this time it was the new Water, who seemed to purposely wait for the others to file in front of her before moving. It struck no one as weird, it appeared that the small ghoul was about as submissive as one would think. It was a smart choice, especially since the clutch was dealing with a proposed loss.

The ghoul walked quietly in the back, she watched the backs of the ghouls in front of her. In the pocket of pants that were now hers but she didn’t feel she belonged in there was a letter from Rain, this one to her. She hadn’t read it yet, he had told her to wait until she was alone after all. She briefly remembered her awakening as a Water ghoul, a late bloomer is what the experts called her but in reality she was a ghoul that was not supposed to be. She still remembered the day, cleaning the barracks as she usually did, gently placing her hand in the bucket of water she had been cleaning with and a cool feeling washing over her. Her life as a non-elemental ghoul ended that day, for better or for worse... She knew Mountain was the one walking semi-beside her, mostly in front, he was the tallest as Rain had coached her. Then she knew the ghoulettes, the tall one Cirrus, the small one Cumulus. She couldn’t exactly tell the other three male ghouls apart, she suspected the skinny one was Dewdrop but both of the other two were around the same height and both quite muscular so she was lost in that department. She watched their tails, they were about mid-height which meant that they were all semi-normal. The only tail that struck her as angry was Dewdrop;s, it was swishing back and forth but down past his knees so she felt he was probably just sad. She understood, she really did.

Little Water was snapped from her investigating when she saw Mountain’s head turn to her from the corner of her eye, he hadn’t even fully looked at her but she could see the intense green of his eyes. Like sweet-smelling grass right after a storm they looked in her direction and she felt them on the masked skin of her face, she quickly looked at the ground again. Her tail twisted tighter around her waist and she attempted to tuck her arms further across her chest with no real luck, she briefly wished she could blend into the rose-red walls of the hall they were just entering.

Through a double doorway was a romantically lit room, the walls were painted an alluring cerulean blue that she knew must have been painted that way when Papa IV earned his skull paint. The accents matched every other accent she had seen both at the capital branch and the branch of the church that she hailed from, deep, dark blackish-red. She couldn’t help but stare at the color of the wall as she went to the first open seat that she saw. Her process of sitting down was halted however, as someone cleared their throat loudly. She looked to see Papa at the head of the table, she looked down at the seat she was at and sniffed. The scent was familiar and no doubt Rain’s, a sudden realization came to her as she stepped back and looked for another seat. The one she found was at the other end of the long table, across from Mountain and next to the Fire ghoul who didn’t seem to like her very much. She couldn’t blame them, any of them, she knew how awkward it was because it was awkward for her too. She didn’t want to take anyone’s place, especially not Rain’s. He was lovely.

She sat and when Papa got himself situated a couple of kitchen ghouls brought in some dishes to serve to everyone, making a couple of trips as seemed normal. This was a new situation to her, the bishop liked to eat alone, so in turn his ghouls usually ate together in the common area of their branch without him. She could not join them, even if she wanted to, so social eating seems foreign. Food was served, the prayer had been said, and a bowl of bread was passed around to go with the food in front of them. It got to Dewdrop, he took a piece, then as if she wasn’t there skipped over her to give it right to Mountain. It was okay, she was used to that type of treatment… At least she had some regularity between the branch she hailed from and the capital.

At least that’s what she was thinking before a large hand extended over and put a piece of bread on her plate, that was new. She looked up at the green eyes watching her, picked up the piece, and gently dipped her head before immersing herself in the black tablecloth once more. A huff came gently next to her.


	4. A Simple Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This feels like a filler to me but I tried to push some Easter eggs, next chapter will thankfully be more interesting and less self deprecating.

She was now in a room that was supposed to be her own but felt so foreign in, like a rose's thorn that had pierced through the glove and is now stuck in the gardener's thumb. Like a glove, there had been measures put in place to keep her out of the territory of the other ghouls. She had wanted them too, but as a masterless ghoul she was in danger every moment she was around any other ghoul in the church. Even the ghouls she was supposed to join, however they were different from other demonic ghouls. They serve the Papa, they are special... And she, she was nothing but mop water.

But she didn't have to be though, she thought to herself as she gently unfolded the letter on the small desk in front of her. It was kind of pathetic, this room had obviously never been used, but who would have been here to use it anyway? There were only ever 5-7 ghouls serving a Papa at a time, so the other 8 rooms on the other side of the stairs never needed to be used. She somehow preferred it, being just the slightest bit farther away from the other ghouls. There was less chance of her being under foot or at risk.

The first words she read were "I know you're probably scared, but things will get better." and scared she was, but Rain also knew that she was always scared. He was quiet, like her, but he saw things in others that she couldn't ever dream of. Rain was lovely, kind, and also kind of nosy which she was reminded as he talked about how he missed listening to her sing, she decided to skip that part when writing a letter back to him. It was best he and whoever else knew forget that she could even open her mouth.

He went on to warn her that things would be hard at first, that it was possible that it could take the others a week to warm up to her. Even though the circumstances of the letter were somewhat unideal, Rain still seemed happy, upbeat, and he went on to explain why: "I think I might have found a mate, I miss my friends, I love them. But there's something about the Aether here that feels blissfully different. I hope you don't mind little Puddle, what would you think about us being together?"

There it was again, Rain calling her Puddle. In all Rain’s endless knowledge of others he failed to realize that that name was not only not hers, but it was also an insult created by other ghouls. Though, it was also her fault that Rain didn’t know that. He always said the nickname so happily, with no bitterness at all and it left her unable to hurt him by telling the older ghoul that he was using a name that hurt her. However, reading that still made her smile that private little smile she only ever reserved for Rain, she had known that Rain was intrigued by the Aether at the other branch from the moment the two had met. She didn't mind it, and made sure to tell that to Rain as she wrote her own letter to him as she read.

Quark, the other Aether, was nicer to her than the others. Though he never got past arm's length, he would save some food for her when the others took her share, he would step between her and Boulder, and sometimes he asked her how she was feeling if she was sick. Even though they couldn't bond either naturally or synthetically, he managed to be kind after every single failed bonding attempt and that only furthered when Rain came.

Rain was her mentor, a fully realized water ghoul who was well respected and liked. He has seen things she could never even imagine, been places she couldn’t place on a map… He is awesome, and was awesome to learn from... When he came the others were all over him, he was sad at first, but mentored her well and slowly grew comfortable around the other branch. Even deciding to eat with her alone on the stairs while the others warned him not to, he always smiled and told them that they were welcome to join. No one besides Quark ever did... And Rain never asked any questions, just lovingly guided her until she opened up to him.

He didn't ask questions when they ate alone in a completely different area, not when he watched her shut herself in her room during communal time, not when her potted plants got mysteriously smashed, nor when her split lip bled every time she went to ask him a question about the bass. He just looked into her eyes, and told her that he was beginning to understand why he was brought to the church and that he was happy to help. She usually brushed him off, but everytime he said that it made her chest hurt and she wanted to cry but she never did.

Eventually she had opened up, and he made her smile in return. He was terrible with nature but he even helped her to repot her plants. She found herself happy in those little times, even when they just sat quietly together as she messed with chords he had taught her on the bass.

It all seemed far away now, those six months with him had been the best of her life. Even out of all the years she spent as a cleaning ghoul. Hopelessness rolled gently down her naked cheek, her new mask shiny, and staring right through her with empty eyes. She closed her own and tried to get a grip, bending over the letters in the dim light. Her mind wandered all the pain she had gone through, through the long drive to the place she now inhabited, and dinner that night. How she must have looked trying to sit in the chair she didn't know was Rain's, she wished she would just evaporate.

But what came to mind instead of continuous embarrassment was the large hand reaching over to put a piece of bread on her plate. It belonged to the large Earth ghoul, Mountain, but why would he do something like that for a stranger? Especially when his clutch mate clearly bypassed her on purpose...

Suddenly she reread the first sentence of Rain's letter, "I know you're probably scared, but things will get better."... Maybe it was a sign?

She thought about it more, finished her letter to Rain, making sure to leave out all the bad parts. Then decided that it was time for bed, she would figure things out every waking moment that came tomorrow.

And that's exactly what she did, she had slept rather well but felt a little groggy from how late she ended staying up. What awoke her was the sound of a knock at her door, she went through a series of emotions as she started to fully wake up. First fear, worrying about who it was behind that door. Then confusion, this was not her room and she didn't know where she was. Then realization, as a gentle hello came from beyond the door. It was a vaguely familiar voice but she couldn't quite pinpoint who it was, so she quickly put on her mask and wrapped one of the new jackets given to her around her torso.

When she answered the door she found Aether, he smiled kindly and explained how everyone had forgotten to give her a schedule. “It’s a lot like the one Rain was training you for but just a little different.” He explained to her gently, handing her a small piece of paper in neat handwriting. She looked down at it and did her best to log it, meanwhile Aether went on: “I don’t know how much of the bass you were able to learn in such a short while but Papa requested that you join us this morning, I think he might be tired of Rain’s old replacement.” He said with a smile in his eyes, but it quickly faded, as if he regretted what he had just said. He was about to open his mouth to stutter out some fallacy of correction but she just nodded and slowly closed the door on him, even though it wasn’t a rude gesture she knew the connotations of it and felt sort of bad.

Besides it’s not like it was false, she really was just another replacement for the beloved Water ghoul.


End file.
